More of this Feature • Part 1: Graduate Student Unionization

Related Resources • Research Ethics • Educational Reform • Alternative Careers

New U.S. Federal Regulations on Ethics Training
All students and postdocs who are funded by the National of Institutes of Health must be trained in scientific ethics. That’s not new; however, recently issued regulations stipulate that all research staff working on projects funded by the Public Health Service will require training in scientific ethics. This means that virtually everyone funded with US federal grants will need to be trained in ethics. Specifically, training must encompass the following areas:

• Data acquisition, management, sharing, and ownership
• Mentor/trainee responsibilities
• Publication practices and responsible authorship
• Peer review
• Collaborative science
• Human subjects
• Research involving animals
• Research misconduct
• Conflict of interest and commitment.

These new ethical regulations are needed can lead to more responsible research, despite the added training and curriculum requirements.

Reforming Graduate Education
The year 2000 brought continued questions about the structure of graduate education.  Generally, speaking, questioning the adequacy of graduate education isn't new or unusual. It's one of the great pastimes of most grad students! Throughout the late 90's formal discussions about reforming graduate education abounded. For example, in 1998, the Association of American University Professors issued a report and recommendations about changing the structure of graduate education. This year the discussion continued with the release of several new reports. Recommendations abound; however definitive answers are not in sight.

Post-Doctoral Employment
The difficulty of obtaining an academic position is well known; however, this past year two opposing themes emerged regarding employment opportunities for graduates. Some discussions indicated an increase in the availability of academic positions, while most emphasized the need for graduates to search for new opportunities outside of the ivory tower. These issues haven't been resolved, but it is clear that graduate students should keep career alternatives in mind.

Part 1 > The Year in Graduate Education > 1